It was the the first time these units performed a demonstration with the National Guard at the Armory, and the third time they worked together in a joint operation.

Officers, firefighters and medical personnel tackled two scenarios: one with an active shooter inside the building, and another with multiple shooters and two bombs inside. Each scenario lasted a half-hour.

Officers from each agency gathered around a circle for a debriefing after each exercise. Each discussed what went right and what went wrong.

For Forest Grove Police Sgt. Dean Foster, who controlled the scenario inside the Armory, the training allows each unit to handle a situation under stress and with limited resources. He explained that five years ago, fire and medical personnel would be kept out of the danger zone while cops cleared the building. As a result, people weren't treated in time.

Then, a new system was created. Cops would isolate the threat in an area of the building. An “overwatch” unit would escort fire and medical personnel through a “casualty collection” point where they could treat victims.

Lt. Col. Maurice Marshall said he reached out to Foster six months before the scenario. Officers from each of the agencies met at the Armory for a tabletop demonstration of the scenario in February.

Communication between agencies becomes key in an active shooter scenario, Cpt. Chris Woodford of Forest Grove Fire said. As the scenario continues, calm chatter from officers inside and outside the building buzz from the radios. He said active shooter incidents during his time in Forest Grove have been resolved with minor to no injuries.

During the demonstrations, Forest Grove Police Cpt. Kevin Ellingsburg used a grease pencil to jot down notes on Police Chief Janie Schutz’s car windows, as he relayed information on the radio to different units.

“This is making everyone in the Forest Grove area a lot safer if we ever have an active shooter, whether at the high school or at the armory,” Woodford said. “We’re all on the same page...This is allowing us to get the injured victims that have a chance of surviving out and treated faster.”

Schutz said she was learning how Forest Grove Police interacted with the other agencies from the command post, noting she didn’t practice such scenarios while in North Carolina.

“We send cops in to get the bad guys, knowing that there are weapons involved,” Schutz said. “The goal is everyone goes home. That’s the mindset of a cop. We all go home.”